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India’s ₹2,000-crore public electric vehicle (EV) charging push could support just 18,811 charging points, less than 2% of the 1.32 million required to meet the country’s 30% EV adoption vision by 2030, highlighting a widening infrastructure challenge even as EV sales accelerate.
The estimate by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) assumes a 100% subsidy for both upstream infrastructure and charging equipment. The report said grid upgrades alone can account for 50% of the cost of setting up a public charging station, adding financial pressure on operators struggling with low utilisation.
Charging Infrastructure Gap
The findings come despite a more than tenfold expansion in India’s public charging network, from 5,151 stations in 2022 to 52,718 by July 2026. Annual EV sales have risen from around 50,000 in 2016 to 2.5 million in FY26, while July 2026 sales jumped 63.2% year-on-year to 307,752 units.
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In its briefing note, “Improving the EV Charging Experience in India: Beyond Charger Deployment,” released on Wednesday, IEEFA called for shifting government support from charger installation alone to verified performance, alongside lower taxes and concessional financing for grid infrastructure.
A 2024 IEEFA study found that nearly 84% of chargers examined in a representative sample across four Delhi regions were non-functional. The latest report recommends linking future subsidies, land concessions and viability-gap funding to charger uptime, successful charging sessions and maximum fault-resolution timelines.
“Charger uptime and reliability, not just the number of chargers, are essential to the EV charging experience,” said Charith Konda, Lead Energy Specialist, IEEFA.
“India has installed a meaningful number of charging stations, and now the next phase is about ensuring those chargers work reliably, making payment and access seamless, and ensuring home charging is not left to the discretion of individual housing societies,” he added.
Policy Recommendations
The report recommended reducing GST on public charging from 18% to 5%, aligning it with the tax rate on EV purchases. It said public charging costs could, in some cases, equal the running cost of a CNG vehicle, weakening the economics of EV ownership.
Report- Improving the EV charging experience in India-Beyond charger deployment.pdf
IEEFA also proposed a unified payment system across charging networks, a “right to charge” for residents with designated parking spaces and concessional long-term financing for grid upgrades. It sought a reduction in GST on battery-swapping services from 18% to 5%.
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Dhruv Garg, Energy Finance Analyst at IEEFA, said: “ToU tariffs can be a powerful tool in making EV charging work better for the power system.”
Such tariffs could shift charging to off-peak and renewable-rich hours, reducing pressure on evening electricity demand and lowering overall system costs, he added.
TOPICSelectric vehicleThis article was first uploaded on September sixteen, twenty twenty-six, at twenty-four minutes past six in the evening. © The Indian Express (P) Ltd